A Most Challenging Job Market

Finding good people to work in pest management has always been a challenge; one made even harder thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a new wage and benefits survey, 56 percent of pest management professionals said attracting and hiring employees was more difficult in the past two years. The survey was conducted by Readex Research for PCT and the National Pest Management Association and sponsored by BASF.

For ABC Home & Commercial Services in Austin, Texas, hiring was “much, much, much more difficult,” said owner Bobby Jenkins. As a result: “There’s never been a more stressful time to be in business than right now,” he said.

Not only did pest management companies need more workers to keep pace with rapid growth, but competition for employees in general increased to an all-time high with more people retiring early, staying home to care for children or quitting to change careers.

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“People are saying, what job am I willing to do, for what pay and what benefits?” said Jenkins, who had about 40 positions open in September across service lines. He competes for entry-level workers with other service companies but also with Tesla and high-tech manufacturers that have moved into his market.

All employers are trying to get better at attracting and keeping employees. “It’s always been important but today it’s absolutely critical,” said Jenkins.

Twenty-three percent of PMPs said retaining employees was more difficult in the past two years, found the survey. Jenkins was one of them. “It is an incredibly competitive market and people are recruiting my people every single day,” he said. Mark Hopper, owner of Hopper Termite & Pest in Mountain Home, Ark., also found it harder to retain new employees with local boat manufacturers promising higher wages and signing bonuses. “I think we lose a lot of our opportunities to them right now,” he said.

Not being fully staffed crimped companies’ ability to grow, said PMPs in follow-up interviews.